ASLBROTHERSWEEK2016
by Naoko's Fiery Hell
Summary: Tumblr Tag: aslbrosweek2016 Username: naokosdarkmusical (take a couple minutes and read it through, you might enjoy it)
1. Memories and Moments

(Idea: baby Luffy has nightmares about drowning after shanks saved him)

* * *

Luffy woke up with a jolt, gasping for breath. His hands had come up to his throat as he had dreamt. It was one of the few nightmares he had, but it was a reoccurring one he was drowning, sinking deeper and deeper into the dark blue sea.

As he quieted his gasping breaths he forced himself to relax, Shanks had saved him losing an arm in the process. That bloody stump was another of his nightmares, he had been unable to protect one of the few people that cared about him and it drove him to anger. He had made a promise on the straw hat that he would be the freest on the seas. He would be the Pirate King.

Looking around he smiled widely, this was a quiet moment that he could enjoy. He didn't have to fill the air with laughter so late at night. So we curled back up against Sabo and Ace, enjoying the warmth that his older brothers gave him as they slept in their base in the trees. He could relax and go back to sleep, he would dwell on the memories another day.


	2. The Bonds of Cups

Day 2: _Bonds_ / Nakama

(Idea: ace is more than happy to replace a father with a brother, two brothers in fact)

* * *

Two of the three children stood around the tree stump, the three little red cups a beacon of hope to Ace's eyes.

"Well, let's just leave it until the time comes," The eldest raven walked up to the stump, carrying a large bottle of sake. "Maybe we'll set out independently."

As Ace set down the large bottle, Luffy exclaimed excitedly, "Ahh! You stole that from Dadan!" Sabo shushed the youngest of the group with a small smile, watching the oldest of them to see what he was going to say next.

"Did you guys know?!" Ace asked excitedly as he pulled the cork from the bottle. These two would be his reason for living until he made a name for himself. Even after that, they would be his most important people. Pouring the bottle he continued. "We can become brothers if we exchange these cups of sake!"

Luffy the hyper brat that he was, looked like he was almost bouncing out of his skin at the statement. "Brothers? Really?!"

Carefully Ace poured the alcohol into the tiny cups, later they would protect and cherish them visible proof of their bond. But for now the cups would be the vessel of the promise they would share. "When we become Pirates we might not be on the same ship but our brotherhood will always be with us." The blonde had looked to him as he plowed though his little speech, lips curling up to show the missing tooth as he smiled at the impassioned words.

"Wherever you are, whatever you do, We'll always be bonded together!" Ace lifted his cup, speaking his promise to the two younger boys. And they followed suit, more than happy to have him, with his dirty blood as their older brother. He reared up a bit but held out the cup, hearing the clink of porcelain on porcelain. "So from now on, we're brothers!"

"Yeah!" Ace was more than happy to replace the bond he had with his father. Especially if these two would be his brothers. He would protect them the best he could. Because they had already made a solid bond.


	3. The Logbook And What It Symbolizes

Day 3: Those Damn Brats!

(The only time Dadan tried to bond with the ASL brothers, they drove her thoroughly crazy. Inspiration: post/150636548174/aslbrosweek-day-3-those-damn-brats-tfw

)

* * *

Dadan knew she was going crazy that was the only reason she had sat down with the three tiny monsters and attempted to bond with them over a book.

Sabo forever the calmest child of the three had plopped down on her right hooking his arm through hers as he looked at the book in her hands with a curious smile. He was still squirming in excitement as his gaze shifted between the book and her face.

Luffy had crawled up to her shoulder trying to escape Ace's annoyance. The tick mark on her temple was starting to develop. "Ace leave Luffy alone!" Dadan almost snarled at Ace who was holding onto her left arm. Ace glared back, defiance raising his hackles  
as he reached for Luffy once more.

Dadan sighed this was going to be a lot harder than she thought it was going to be. "Boys! Sit still will you?! I wanted to show you something." Luffy looked at Dadan, noticing her growing temper and flushed cheeks he settled down a bit.

"Now, look here, it's a pirate's log book! Don't tell Garp I showed you this or he'd kill me!" All three boys' rapt attention was now on the small book. They gazed excitedly eyes hungry for any information they could take from it.

"Is it a logbook from the grand line?" Luffy asked, a finger in his nose as he looked to his older brothers, Sabo shrugged he didn't know but of the three children he was the best reader. Ace looked to him as well silently asking him to look it over later  
and explain it to him.

Ace was almost illiterate. He could spell his own name and that was about it. Makino was currently teaching him, but it was slow going. Yes he was learning, but not as quickly as he would like. He needed to read and write if he was ever going to be a  
captain. By the time he was the captain of the spade pirates Ace would be reading and writing like a fiend, he enjoyed books more than anything in the world besides a good fight. And his logbook was written in small precise writing neat and tidy,  
exactly where it needed to be. And when he became the second division commander of the white beard Pirates he would surprise Marco and the other commanders with his love of books and writing, though it was all a memorial to Sabo in his mind.

Luffy on the other hand was completely illiterate. He had promised Makino and his brothers that he would start lessons soon, but he kept putting them off. There were so many things to do! He didn't have time for reading! In the future he would be literate  
enough to read and write, but his handwriting would be terrible so he generally would leave that sort of stuff up to Nami. Due to this the Strawhat Pirates generally thought Luffy illiterate, he didn't bother showing off. e kept his little secrets  
reading in the dark of the night where could he could imagine Sabo sitting my side him, encouraging him when he got to difficult words.

But both Ace and Luffy started taking Makino's literacy lessons much more seriously after being introduced to the logbook in Dadan's large hands. They were entranced by it, just as Sabo was. All three were lured by the freedom the book offered. Dadan  
shook her head and sighed. "These damn brats!"


	4. Chasing the Future

Day 4: _Past and Present_

(Luffy thinks about the past, a lot, when he's alone)

(I'm borrowing the riddle, from rboooks' day 3 submission check it out – here (check out the post on tumblr for the link I'm not messing FFwith anymore today) it's fucking amazing, because I don't know the original translation of ace's "if gold

Roger had a son" question)

(This happens during the two year timeskip, that's why Luffy thinks Sabo is dead, forgive me!~)

* * *

Luffy thinks a lot about the past when he's alone. Seeing as he's been left on an uninhabited island, he has a lot of free time between fighting the native wildlife, sleeping, and eating. He thought about the future quite a bit, but for the time being,  
/while he was allowed to, he dwelled on the past. Reveled in the emotions he let himself feel when he thought of the past that made him into the person he was.

As much as he adores Ace, Luffy prefers to think about the times when Sabo was still there. While Ace was nicer after the blonde died, he was a lot happier when Sabo was still alive. Apparently, Sabo have been Ace's first friend. The first person to answer  
/Ace's famous riddle "Where do the sins of the parents fall upon death?" correctly

Technically, Luffy was the second to get it correct; even though Ace's exact line of questioning had changed to "Would you be sad if I died?" Luffy would have been sad, even though Ace had hated him at the time, Ace had been a constant that he, as a small  
/child abandoned to a place he didn't want to be, had desperately needed.

Luffy had liked Sabo, he had enjoyed the blonde's happy disposition. He had liked the way Sabo teased him gently over his rubber powers, taking note that Luffy hadn't really wanted them in the first place, even though he had been thrilled to have them  
/after he had gotten used to his Devil Fruit abilities.

The young Raven, had definitely been thrilled to find someone who listened to him properly, that didn't make fun of him the way Ace did. He had been even more surprised when the blonde took his shitty opinions into account, listening to them through before  
/dismissing them.

Luffy liked to think that Sabo would have been super proud of the way Ace grew as a person after the blonde's untimely murder, yes Luffy saw the blonde's death as a murder, there was no other way around it, this corrupted world had murdered _both_ of  
/his older brothers.

Luffy could be startlingly dark when he thought about the past. He was making plans to take down both Blackbeard, the Whitebeard traitor had captured and then profited off his older brother, and Akainu, seeing as the Red Dog had been the one to murder  
/Ace in his search of 'Absolute Justice'.

Luffy shook his head and sighed, he was thinking about Sabo, not revenge. Think about Sabo, Luffy likedto think that Sabo would be happy with Ace's development as a person. Ace had managed to turn himself around, by the time he left to become a

pirate. He had manners, and knew how to use them to the surprise of Dadan and the bandits. But what had changed the most, was that Ace was much more willing to let people in.

Even though he had lost a brother, Ace had gained a lot of things from the emotional trauma. Luffy on the other hand, had learned a lot from the experience. He learned that he needed to get stronger and stronger and stronger. He needed to be able to protect  
/the people he cared about. He had failed himself,not to mention Ace, and the other Whitebeard Pirates when Ace fell by Akainu's hand.

Luffy shook his head again, he didn't want to think about the vice Admiral, thinking about the bastard made him think of Ace in his final moments, _tears welling up with a sad smile curling his lips "Thank you for loving me."_

'Why wouldn't I love you?!' Luffy thought, 'You're my older brother and you're an amazing person!' Ace had been one of the most loyal men in the world, after accepting Whitebeard's mark he had done everything the man had asked him.

But that was all in the _past_ now, both Sabo and Ace weredead. He had mourned his losses. He would stand up and walk in the present, and he would run towards tomorrow. _He had a dream to chase after all._


	5. Ace Comes To An Understanding

Day 5: Day of AceSL

(Idea:A day of life on the Moby Dick)

A sidenote, I have just learned I cannot write Marco's speech ticks

This one's shorter than the last two, but I might expand on it later!

* * *

Ace was exhausted, being a division commander was super hard. Somehow it managed to be harder than when he was captain of the Spade Pirates.

Leaving his room, Ace stumbled into the café and sat down, slumping forwards and letting his head hit the table with a soft thud. He made a soft, pitiful whine that completely contrasted with his personality type. But with the downward spiral his life  
was going in at the moment, he really didn't care much for dignity, Ace was _too tired_ to care.

Thatch, noticing Ace's visible slump, ambled over with a tray piled full of food and a large mug of coffee, 5 creams and sugars. Ace hated the bitterness of coffee but desperately needed the caffeine that the black liquid offered.

The raven took the mug with a tired, grateful, smile. Thatch, reared back slightly as he got a good look at Ace's face. The younger man's normally tan skin was pale and sallow, dark bags hung under his eyes. "Shit Ace, you look terrible! You need to get  
some rest."

"Yeah Thatch, I know, there's too much paperwork here. I'm used to having my first mate's help with this shit!" Ace took a few gulps from the mug and his eyes drifted down to the tray in front of him. He wasn't sure if he was hungry or not.

Thatch nodded, The older man understood completely. It had been super hard to transition into all the paperwork that needed to be done by the division commanders, though in his case Thatch had Marco's help. The pompadoured Man was also the head chef,  
so he had much more work to do than the normal division commanders.

Thatch gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, a nod, and a smile, before walking off to greet the next 'early riser'. So Ace started to eat the food that had been given to him. He hummed softly enjoying the taste as his brain started chugging along.

To tell a truth, the lack of sleep was making Ace cranky, which caused more spot fires then he'd like to admit. As he chewed, he thought about it. In all honesty the last time he had gotten great night's rest was before leaving Foosha Village and Dawn  
Island behind. So basically it was the last time he had snuggled up with his little brother. _Damn_ , that said a lot about him, and not all of it sounded good.

He pushed the finished tray away, an embarrassed expression morphing his face. Putting his head back on the table he sighed softly, "God Damnit, I miss my little brother." He whispered it to the table like a terrible secret. Hoping that, just by admitting  
the truth of the situation would help him. It did.

Both he and Luffy had promised to live their lives with no regrets. And while he hadn't regretted anything yet, he was really missing his kid brother. Could that counts as a regret, not spending more time just bonding together?

Marco had walked over, hearing Ace's mumbling and sat down across from him. "Hey, Ace. What's up with you, yoi"

"Oh hey Marco, not much, you?" Ace lifted his head off the table and gave a small smile. "Actually, I wanna talk to you and pops about something..."


	6. Sabos The Smart One

Day 6: Day of A _Sabo_ L

* * *

Original idea: A day of life at the Revolutionary Army base.

New Idea: Sabo chases after Ace during Ace's suicidal rush to kill Blackbeard. (Thatch didn't die, but he's been holed up in bed recovering)

(This one's the first that's actually kind of AU, I've been trying to keep my prompts kinda Canon. It's AU in the sense that both Ace and Luffy know Sabo is still alive, and that Sabo remembers them.)

This onefeelsso much longer than the other ones X.X

* * *

Day 6: Day of A _Sabo_ L

Original idea: A day of life at the Revolutionary Army base.

New Idea: Sabo chases after Ace during Ace's suicidal rush to kill Blackbeard. (Thatch didn't die, but he's been holed up in bed recovering)

(This one's the first that's actually kind of AU, I've been trying to keep my prompts kinda Canon. It's AU in the sense that both Ace and Luffy know Sabo is still alive, and that Sabo remembers them.)

This is so much longer than the other ones X.X

* * *

Sabo could not believe what Ace was doing. The blonde decided that his older brother had finally lost his goddamned mind. Sabo couldn't blame him though, he himself would have probably lost his shit if somebody from the Revolutionary Army had backstabbed one of their comrade in arms.

But Sabo had turned in a temporary resignation to Dragon-san, said that he had a couple things to do, and took off after his crazy older brother. While Ace had caught up to Luffy before he fought Crocodile. Sabo got there afterwards, a pat on the head and a congratulations had made his younger brother squirm with pride. And then he had to be introduced to his little brother's crew and the Going Merry. It amused Sabo when people asked if they were sure they were related, but it also annoyed him, Luffy and Ace looked like they could be blood related, he was the pale skinned, blue- eyed blond amongst dark eyes, black hair and tanned skin. Ace had always made jokes about Sabo being the pretty one of the three brothers.

Being the "pretty" one didn't bother him, the way Ace said it however annoyed him. His brother had a mean sense of humor. Ace had always laughed when Luffy hurt himself with his, at the time, faulty rubber powers. Sabo thought about his brothers as he followed Ace on his mad dash across the grand line.

And when he finally caught up, just before the idiot could confront Blackbeard, the slightly older man actually had the nerve to be startled by his little brother's 'sudden' arrival. "Ace, come back to Whitebeard's ship with me, Thatch isn't dead, he's getting better. You do not need to avenge him. Help me watch after Luffy, Blackbeard is baiting you! Dragon-san managed to get some information. Blackbeard is after Luffy! If you don't go back to the Moby Dick, we need to stay close to the little idiot for a while."

Ace reared back in shock, the idea that he had been played hadn't even occurred to him. He supposed that's why Sabo was the smartest one of the three brothers. Consenting to the change in plans, Ace gladly used his striker to get them closer to their little brother, making sure to use a DenDen Mushi to call back to the Moby Dick, Marco, Thatch, and Pops, letting them know he had decided to end the wild goose chase. They were relieved of course, Sabo had expected as much. The blonde however had not expected the fervent thanks he had gotten for talking some sense into their fiery brother.

It took them a while to even figure out where the straw-hatted boy had landed himself. Then they got the newspaper. Ace had nearly lost his mind! Szabo was just amused, he gladly watched Ace blow up a couple marine ships to 'vent' his anger and outrage.

"What the hell is Luffy thinking?! Taking on Enies Lobby, BY HIMSELF?! NO BACK UP!" Ace's voice was getting shriller the longer he screamed. Those poor Marines, they didn't do anything but get in Ace's way.

Smiling, Sabo just watched, batting away a couple brave Marines who had decided that any man with Fire Fist Ace had to be a dangerous man, and therefore needed to be taken out. He kept his hat covering his face as he worked through the Marines coming at him. He didn't want to be recognized as a Revolutionary Army member, it would raise a lot of eyebrows and concerns among the hierarchy of the Navy.

When Ace finally calmed down, Sabo refrained from laughing at him, Luffy was going to do whatever Luffy was going to do. It's the way the younger boy worked, it didn't matter how worked up he got others he would always dismiss their concerns with a smile and a wave. Though the blonde had wished that his little brother would keep out of trouble long enough for them to get to him.

Ace had called the Moby Dick after calming down, ranting at Marco that something needed to be done. Luffy was going to get himself killed. Although his actions were noble, it had practically been a suicide mission to retrieve Nico Robin back from the Marines. They got out of it fine though, somehow Luffy's Devils luck had kicked in and his crew made it out safely.

Sabo decided that the older, raven-haired, pirate had a brother complex, then he admitted to himself that he had one as well. Both older brothers adored Luffy. It was as obvious as the tides, both of them would do anything to protect their little brother it was the way they worked. If only Luffy would accept that.

So Sabo and Ace headed towards the Sabaody Archipelago, hoping that they got there before Luffy. The three of them needed to talk.


	7. Luffy is a Wise Child

Day 7: Day of AS _Luffy_

Original idea: A day on the thousand sunny. New idea: Ace and Sabo catch up to Luffy.

This is continued from my "Day 6″ prompt, look at it here this!

AN: I watched "Episode of Sabo" before typing this up, and I'm more than willing to admit that I cried like a small child. I was listening to "The Phoenix" by Fall Out Boys on repeat for a while, while writing this.

Here's where Canon changes, Camie, Pappagu, and Hatchi are all chilling out at Fishman Island or they met before and helped Hatchi out or something because fucking with them makes my rewrite of Canon events too confusing and I need to rewatch the Sabaody  
Arc because the first draft of this was _insane_. If you wanna see that I might post it for you guys later.

* * *

The Strawhats had just finished dealing with Duval, and his renamed Riders, the day before when the two brothers arrived in the middle of the night. They stayed quiet, trying to keep from waking anyone up as they snuck aboard.

Luffy was pleasantly surprised when both of his older brothers showed up on his ship the day before Thousand Sunny reached the Sabaody Archipelago. He expected them to be protective; the two of them had always been super protective of him when they were  
younger. He however had not been expecting the sheer nervousness that they were both radiating.

Luffy hadn't been expecting to see either of his brothers for a while, and so the sudden arrival while it made him more than happy, it also worried him immensely. Why were his brothers acting so damn shifty? He would confront them.

Pulling Ace and Sabo with him, Luffy entered the training room atop the main mast. "Ok you two, what's wrong? Last time I saw you guys, Ace was hunting someone and Sabo was chasing after in an attempt you stop him. Why are you two on my ship now? Not  
that I mind, but I would like to know. Unless the two of you have finally decided to join my crew?~" Luffy said the last part teasingly automatically getting twin shouts of "NO!"

So Luffy leaned back and waited, foot bouncing slightly as he tried to act mature. Sabo sighed and shook his head, before rubbing at his temples slightly. "Sometimes I wish you were a little less wise. You remember the man that Ace was after? Teach? He  
attacked one of the division commanders, stabbed him in the back and left him for dead over a devil fruit. Luckily Thatch survived, but he'd currently being forced into bed rest so he can recover fully."

Ace cut in, glaring at the floor as his hands clenched into tight fists. "Teach, he goes by Blackbeard now, the bastard, he was baiting me. But he's probably going to be coming after you so that he can be accepted as a Shichibukai..."

Luffy's hands smacked his knees a few times as he thought before shrugging uncaringly. "If that's so just stay here for a couple days. We can hang out and when the bastard comes after me we'll take him down, together, as brothers."

Nodding, the three of them climbed down the mast and met back up with the crew deciding that they should all hand out on Sabaody together. Safety in numbers right?

~~~~

There's no huge fight scene, imagine that Law, Kid, and Luffy had to fight the marines but Luffy just got caught up in someone else's shitty luck.

~~~

And then Bartholomew Kuma showed up. Sabo was sincerely surprised, why was Kuma here? Walking over to the large man Sabo gave a half smile and nodded respectfully, a note was exchanged and Kuma engaged him in a flurry of punches. Jumping to his brothers,  
Sabo dragged Luffy, Ace and the others away while Kuma sat down, refusing to give chase for now. He was getting the time he needed to go over the note and give everyone the news that was on it.

A couple minutes later and Sabo knew why Kuma had bothered to show his face to the second in command. A goddamned admiral was on Sabaody, Sabo didn't have a clue why, besides maybe one of those disgusting World Nobles had been prissy recently and demanded  
a military escort.

All Sabo knew was that was Kuma was going to be coming "after them" soon. And he'd send them to where they'd get the most training. So he informed Luffy and the crew, act natural, and react badly to the oncoming attack.

That's when Kuma came after them, first to be sent flying was Zoro, Who is still seriously injured from Thriller Bark, "I see you survived". Then Brook, who went with a bad skull joke, "I'll protect you even if it costs me my life! Oh but I'm already  
dead so I supp-".

Sanji was knocked away before Ussop was sent away. Sanji was transported almost immediately afterwards. Ignoring Luffy's protest of "you can't win don't fight!". Franky and Nami were the next to go. Nami's shriek of "Someone help me!" Tugged at Luffy's  
heart.

Chopper was next, he had eaten to rumble balls to make it convincing, but he had lost himself in the rage of watching his comrades be 'erased'. Luffy begs followed, "please stop!" Robin's scream of Luffy ripped at Luffy's rubber heart.

Than Kuma gave Luffy a sad smile, "You and I will never meet again, Farewell Strawhat." And poofed him along with his two brothers. Rayleigh would be sent along later, seeing as he owed a debt to the hat that rested atop the rubber boy's head.

They would all meet again in two years, the promised time, on Sabaody. There they would take their adventure into the New World, when they would be strong enough to fight against the others in the New World.


	8. The Brothers Hate Finals Day

Anadiangelo's prompt: ASL studying for a test or de stressing after one?

For anadiangelo (on Tumblr) because they have a test and need cute de-stressing ASL brother fluff! This also fills out the requirement for ASLbrosweek's Day 8: How Do You AU?

So I must give Ana all my thanks for kicking my butt into gear so that I could write something! It'd ended up being less cute than I thought it was gonna turn out, but oh well!

(Luffy is ADHD here because I'm 90% sure he is in the show and manga as well. When he wakes up in Alabasta after taking down Crocodile is a perfect example.)

* * *

Normally Luffy didn't _trudge_ , but today of all days he was trudging home after a grueling set of finals. Normally he'd get accommodations, extra time and a quiet room, but today he didn't and so he was forced to sit with a group of 30+ other students.  
The sound of pens scratching across paper had been hellish on his ADHD, and by the end of the testing period for his first final he had been nearly tearing at his skin.

The rest of the day went downhill from there, sure Luffy managed to finish his finals properly. But the sheer anxiety that he had gone through while taking the tests had frayed at his nerves until he felt weary to his bones. Which was why he was currently  
trudging home, messenger bag over a shoulder.

He wanted to get home and lay down, he didn't even feel like his normal bouncy self. Even the thought felt like blasphemy, his brothers would be horrified when they saw him like this. The only good thing about being this tired was that his brain was slowing  
down from it's normally dizzying pace.

When Luffy reached the apartment building he lived in he relaxed a bit, he was going to be home soon. He'd be able to lie down in his bed and let his brain empty of the day. He went over the idea a few times in his head as he got in the elevator and opened  
the door to the three bedroom apartment he shared with both Ace and Sabo.

"Ace, Sabooo, I'm hooome..." Luffy let the words drip from his lips, the words heavy with the sluggishness he felt. He locked the door behind him and entered the living room, deciding to forgo his bed, Luffy flopped onto the couch. He plopped his head  
onto Sabo's lap, letting a loud whiny sound slip from his lips as he closed his eyes, finally able to relax.

Sabo lifted the newspaper slightly, an eyebrow raised as he quickly inspected his little brother for injuries, it didn't happen often but sometimes his brother would come back hurt because of a fight he got into. Luffy didn'tlookhurt, so why was he acting  
so childish. "Ace," Sabo called his eyes still on Luffy, "something's wrong with Lu."

Ace who had been in the kitchen getting dinner ready, was almost instantly at his younger brothers' sides. A comforting hand was placed on the smaller raven's shoulder, and Ace crouched down, allowing Luffy to grab onto his shirt. The action in and of  
itself spoke volumes of how stressed Luffy was, he hadn't done it in a couple years. "Hey Lu, what's wrong?"

Luffy turned and pressed his face into Sabo's thigh, sighing a bit as he tried his best to compose himself. "You two know I had my finals today yeah?" He felt more than saw the nods of agreement so he continued, "well I wasn't given accommodations today  
and I was stuck in the classroom with the rest of the students, and it was tooloud... Well, by the end of he day I was ready to scream. I felt like my nerves were being sawed at by every noise made in that room."

Both of the older men flinched at the statement, even though Luffy was a hyperactive brat most of the time; he was, for the most part, pretty level headed. So what had happened sound like it could have been a breaking point. Breakdowns were bad for Luffy,  
their black hole of a brother refused to eat when he couldn't hold it together. Which was _really_ bad considering the speed at which Luffy's body burned food up.

"Well," Sabo drawled slowly, "finals are over for you, and it's almost summer. So you won't have to think about classes soon enough. Do you just wanna cuddle for now?" At the nod of agreement, Sabo scooted over dragging Luffy half into his lap, and Ace  
pulled his feet up into his lap. And they all stayed silent for a while, ejoying each other's company. Finally Luffy could relax, he was safe at home with his big brothers, they could hold him together until he put the pieces back in place. Together,  
they unwound.


	9. When He Thrives On Touch(Share the Love)

Day 9: Freer Than Anyone Else

Idea: In which Luffy is free with his kisses and touches. He's actually surprisingly tactile, but he learned it early on. So it's not his fault, right?

(Zoro's used to it. Nami doesn't mind, Ussop is confused by it, Sanji finds it odd, Chopper enjoys the affection, Robin likes kissing back, Franky finds it SUPER, Brook doesn't know what to do, while Ace and Sabo don't want their little brother kissing anyone but them!)

I was listening to the Hamilton soundtrack and the song "Wait For It" came on and I started bawling, so that's why the beginning is kinda sad. The song reminds me a bit too much of Ace, and it makes me weepy. Also I wanna thank Wordsdrippinginink for listening to me complain and Betaing this for me. It was too long for me to Beta by myself.

I'm also writing this after I caught up to the manga so SPOILERS for Sanji's backstory. It kinda skips around, I wrote the Strawhats in order of when they joined, but that doesn't mean that their individual "stories" are in that order.

This also continues from my day 6 and 7 prompts, so there, continuity!

I happily blame and acknowledge faronarting's ASL drawings for getting me through the writers block I had for the last part, it got shippy-er at the end because of you! Thank you so much for your adorable drawings!

I tried to write at least 200 words per character, some of them ended up being longer than others. But I hope you like it?

* * *

End Of AN

* * *

When Luffy was seven, Shanks arrived in Foosha Village. He was taking a vacation apparently, Luffy hadn't really understood the idea of taking a break from the sea but that was the red-headed man's choice not his.

Akagami Shanks was one of the most tactile people Luffy would every meet; he was always touching one of his crewmates. A hand on the shoulder, a casual lean against someone's side, the brush of hand against hand, a playful kiss on the cheek.

To Luffy, those touches and kisses seemed magical, the crew brightened up when the captain came over and provided body contact. But the kisses were magical in the young boy's eyes. No matter what was wrong, the person who received a kiss almost glowed with happiness. It was awe-inspiring to the little boy, the power that Shanks had to give happiness to his crew.

To be honest it was something Luffy wanted too. The boy was _alone_ in his grandpa's big house, sure Makino watched after him but what Shanks had with his crew was something special. So like any child at the age of seven, Luffy copied his role model. Luffy started giving Makino kisses on the cheek as "thank you's" after meals.

Shanks also involved Luffy in his affection, and found it adorable when the small boy lit up when the man pushed his hair back and pressed a kiss to his forehead. It also made him sad, what kind of monster would deprive so small a child something as base as affection?

When the crew noticed that their captain was being overly affectionate with the boy, they all quickly followed suit. They would drag the boy into hugs squeezing him till his ribs ached. Yassop would speak of his son, eyes distant before pulling the young dreamer along to teach him to shoot cans, Luffy wasn't that great at it but the sharpshooter taught him to at least handle a gun without killing himself.

Lucky Roo, the glutton that he was would offer him pieces of meat as he shared stories of fights out on the open waters. Benn was the most practical, teaching Luffy some basic hand to hand combat, _training_ him so that one day he could be a force to be reckoned with. The training went to hell after the raven-haired boy ate the gum gum fruit, but now the child had the foundation, he could relearn the small tricks and cheap shots that the first mate had practically ingrained into his mind.

Luffy enjoyed it more than he should have, for the first time he was touching and being touched. He was allowed to interact, with people he cared about, people that he himself chose to love. So he once again copied Shanks, he started pressing kisses to cheeks as thanks, he enjoyed the way it lit up their eyes as they received his tiny blessing.

By the time it was time for Shanks to leave, Luffy was so attached that he felt more like Shanks was a father to him than his grandpa was family. The man had given up _an arm_ for him, and then laughed it off when Luffy started weeping, the boy hadn't wanted to be the reason someone he cared about was hurt. And while Red-Hair had only spent about a year on the island but he had helped raise Luffy into a better boy, nay man. Luffy cried when Shanks left, pulling the hat down over his eyes he kissed everyone goodbye, enjoying the glint that sparked in their eyes as they sailed away.

Luffy was going to be like Shanks. Luffy had always been like Shanks; He just hadn't realized that he needed someone to guide him towards what he wanted to be to people. He wanted to make their eyes shine. But to do that, he needed to become king.

* * *

Zoro was used to being kissed by Luffy. He didn't mind all that much either, it felt like a natural part of who Luffy was.

The first time Luffy had kissed him it had actually scared him. He just hadn't expected his slip of a captain to press a soft, butterfly wings on muslin, kiss to the corner of his lips.

It had startled the people around them too; Rika laughed happily hugging Zoro and Luffy's legs before letting them go reluctantly. Luffy had grabbed him by the wrist and started to bounce away, dragging a gaping Zoro behind him.

"C-captain, you can't just k-kiss people like that!" The swordsman was stumbling as he tried to keep up with his hyper captain.

"Why not? You're my first mate and it's my job to keep you happy!" The raven-haired boy said it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. One of the rubber fingers came up to tap Zoro's forehead and then his chest over his heart, as they slipped into the dingy and set off. "These are my responsibilities, Shanks taught me that when I was little."

So Zoro accepted the contact, given by the younger man, it had been something that he had attempted to shy away from since Kunia had died. But there was something about the smaller boy in front of him.

Zoro enjoyed the butterfly kisses that Luffy pressed to his lips on occasion. They were sweet, and reminded him to take a break to enjoy little things that were available to him.

Sometimes when the swordsman fell asleep on deck he could feel the captain slip into his lap so that they could snuggle up.

* * *

Nami didn't mind when Luffy scooped her up into a hug after he took down Arlong, in fact she was crying in gratitude. A quick kiss to the forehead quieted the tears as he carried her to the seat of honor, pressing his hat onto her hair he patted her cheek and placed a plate on the table in front of her. He was coddling her which would normally piss her off, but she had seen the way he treated the other's on the crew.

It was almost sickly sweet the way he watched after them. Carefully making sure that they took care of their emotional health, cheering them up when they most needed it. Kisses were always available, if you walked up and grabbed his hands he would automatically raise it to his lips.

Even after making sure she was fine, he hovered for a few minutes before going off to feed the beast that was his stomach. But as he left, Nami watched as he checked in with the others, a hand on Ussop's shoulder, fingers brushing against Sanji's, a kiss to Zoro's cheek. He also patted some of the children on the head as they crowded around him, looking up to him like an idol.

Luffy was too kind a person, but she had a feeling that she'd continue to take 'advantage' of his kindness, after all, she did want to stay by his side. And he had said that they were Nakama so it was ok to stay with him, and soak up the love that he was willing to offer her.

* * *

Ussop's mother had died when he was about 7, he was alone from then until the time he met the three kids. Then he met Kaya right after her parents died and tried his best to lift her spirits up so that she would get better. He didn't want to see someone else all alone, that was why he was so nice to the sick girl.

It was why Ussop was so confused by Luffy's need to show affection for everyone on the crew.

So Ussop did what he _always_ did, he watched the people around him. Eyes almost hard as he tried to understand why his captain was the way he was. Here was this Super strong pirate, and he had wanted _Ussop_ of all people on his crew.

Sure, Ussop was a good sharp shooter, but he was a coward, so when Luffy had hugged him happily after he joined the others on the Going Merry, he had nearly jumped out of his own skin. The action was so foreign to him that he genuinely hadn't expected it.

It was however something that he had needed, he felt relieved and almost slumped into the slightly shorter boy. His head resting on Luffy's shoulder as he whispered an almost silent "thank you".

Luffy just laughed it off and kept hugging him, Zoro and Nami watching on with almost exasperated expressions on their faces. "It's my job Ussop! Oh! When we get to the next island with a gunshop, I'll show you how to handle a gun, your dad taught me how to look after and handle one, but I can't shoot to save my life!"

* * *

Sanji found it really weird, the way Luffy was always touching his crew. At first he had been furious when he had seen the slip of a boy touching Nami-swan, but as he watched he noticed that the other two, both of whom were men, also received the shorter boy's unyielding affection.

Considering his father had practically hated him, Sanji didn't understand how Luffy could be so affectionate with a failure like him. Fingers brushing against his own reminded him of all the times he had said that his hands were only for cooking. Luffy used his hands to protect the people around him, he used them to hold people he loved close to his heart.

When Luffy pressed kisses to his cheek, caused his heart to race in an uncomfortable staccato. It wasn't as if he was attracted to Luffy, it was just that the affection in and of itself made his skin crawl.

While Zeff had been kind in some ways, he was also an extremely harsh taskmaster, at times literally beating things into his head, forcing Sanji to take up the mantle a vice-head chef at about the age of 14. But he had enjoyed that harshness; there was true kindness and caring under the cruel surface.

Once he got used to the affection he both saw and received it was a lot easier for him to function as a member of the Strawhat Pirates. There were still times that it made him flinch when Luffy got into his face, or suddenly hugged him around the waist. But he was recovering from the psychological damage he had accumulated over the years.

* * *

When Chopper finally accepted Luffy's offer to join his crew, he was startled by the flying hug that he received. He hadn't been hugged since before the Doctor had gotten sick.

Sometimes when he had a dream about the Doctor or Doctorine, he would toddle over to Luffy and tug on the leg of his pants. No matter how many times Chopper did this, Luffy would react the same way each and every time; he'd scoop the small reindeer off his feet and lift Chopper into his arms, once in a while the captain would even carry the tiny doctor around the ship with him. Luffy-san told him tales of the adventures that they will have together with the rest of the crew.

In Chopper's head, he equated Luffy with warm hugs and nuzzling kisses that he _should have received_ when he was little. Luffy was almost stepping in as an older brother, which shocked the reindeer, but it really shouldn't have.

Luffy also took an interest in Chopper's work as a doctor, sitting down with him when he ground up herbs to make different medicines, and even though Luffy was completely clueless to the complexities of medicine he would gladly just cuddle with Chopper as the reindeer studied his books intently.

Chopper used to see the word monster as an insult, but now, he is more than happy to be called a monster. After all, Luffy's the kindest monster he knows.

* * *

Once Robin got used to the affection that Luffy showed everyone on his crew, she enjoyed kissing Luffy back. She'd return playful pecks to the cheek, use her Devil fruit to completely engulf him in a hug. Saul had been right; there would be people that would do anything to protect her.

Luffy was one of them, in fact he was practically the leader of the Robin Protection Squad. She found that out the hard way when he raged through Enies Lobby, taking down hundreds of marines _on his own_. It had been both terrifying and awe inspiring to watch. Monkey D. Luffy had been like a god in a terrible rage, taking out people left, right, and center.

Not only that, but he had declared war on the world government just for her! Robin had learned later that it was a mix of things that had him tell 'Sogeking' to burn down the flag. But at that moment in her mind, he had done it just for her; Luffy had been willing to go against the entire world just to tell her that it was OK for her to live. That she was allowed to _want_ to live.

He was unwaveringly loyal and ready to fight to the death for what he believed in. For those simple reasons, Luffy would forever be one of her favorite people.

She enjoyed draping herself over his shoulders during those rare times when he stood completely still, didn't seem to mind at all seeing as he would reach a hand up to pet her arm a few times before going into silent contemplation.

But sometimes she wondered, why did her captain feel the need to keep such close physical contact with his crew? Not that it was unpleasant, it just didn't make sense to her. Robin found herself questioning his childhood, had he grown up in such a spartan environment?

Her question was easily answered by Garp when he came to give Luffy the chewing out of a lifetime. Yes, Luffy had grown up in an exceedingly cruel environment, while Garp had successfully made Luffy a strong man, he had practically stunted his emotional growth.

* * *

Franky found the straw-hatted captain's actions SUPER cute, and he rather enjoyed the attention that he was given by the shorter man. It was kinda like being around the old Franky Family, or even his parents before they abandoned him at Water 7. At times the affection that he received was almost stifling. Luffy was always around, either silently watching over him or loudly gushing over a silly idea he had and he "wanted Franky to make it happen".

Sometimes his small Captain would beg and cling, hanging off of one of his large arms, whining until he got what he wanted from the larger man. Sometimes the idea would be sound and could be applied to the defenses of the ship or made into a spare weapon. Most of the time though, the idea was interesting, but nonsensical.

Nevertheless, it was almost unnerving when he looked up from working on his latest project and his captain silently sitting there smiling at him. The first time it happened Franky nearly had a heart attack, he hadn't known his new captain could be so quiet.

He could enjoy it now though, what had once been unnerving silences were now reassuring and calming lengths of time they spent together as Franky worked.

* * *

Brook didn't know what to do; he had been on his own for a full fifty years. There were times when he imagined his old crew, the Rumbar Pirates still there and alive. Most of the time when he snapped out of it Luffy would be standing or sitting there with that same smile that he remembered so clearly on Yorki's face.

Brook accepted initial Luffy's offer immediately because the teenager had asked so sincerely. The skeleton knew that people would question his choice, he had been first mate and then captain of the famous Rumbar Pirates 50 years ago, he knew he was a bit of a legend as he _was_ the "Humming Gentleman Brook".

His crew had been a bit of an anomaly, they hadn't attacked civilians, they had made crying children laugh. They'd looked after their own. It was why the death of his crew have been so painful for him. It was also why Brook enjoyed singing with his captain, playing music to lighten the crew's hearts. He would follow Luffy into the afterlife, because that was what you did for a good captain.

He was glad he had formally asked to join after he had gotten his shadow back. He was grateful that the crew had accepted him after he explained his story to them. Luffy on the other hand looked almost benevolent as he smiled on, watching his crew fuss over their newest member as if he had expected this to happen.

Brook gladly accepted the endearing smiles and encouraging nods that he got. Captain Luffy respected the fact that he hated being touched, but there were times where the raven-haired boy would force the musician to accept the affection that he as captain showered upon his crew. Brook would accept that to, grudgingly, they were working on it.

So Brook would keep playing his violin and singing along for his new captain, glad that he was somehow still alive.

* * *

While both brothers had times where they bitched about growing up with Luffy, they were both very happy that they had. Luffy had added a new dimension to their relationship with one another, they had become closer, before Luffy they had been friends but after meeting the small raven they were brothers.

Once Ace had stopped trying to kill Luffy, the three of them got along just fine. The youngest of the three was of course clingy and obsessed with hugging and pressing kisses to their cheeks and the corners of their mouths. So it wasn't really that much of a surprise when they both developed a brother complex for Luffy. They were protective to the point of obsession, making sure Luffy did nothing that he couldn't do on his own or without a little help from the two of them.

At first Ace hated being touched, Luffy was a very hands-on person though, and he was determined to make Ace more comfortable in his own skin. Sabo was better off than Ace, he was more willing to touch and be touched. But there was still a space the blonde kept between himself and the rest of the world.

The two slowly, oh so slowly got used to it, and by the time they had to leave to start their adventures, they were actively hugging and kissing Luffy back.

At times Luffy was actually shy around his sworn brothers, their kisses _could be_ desperate and searching. Ace was more likely to deepen a kiss than his blonde brother was, but both Luffy and Sabo agreed on the fact that Ace needed more from people than Sabo. It was never forceful though; Luffy would gladly both take and give what he could.

Sabo's kisses were sweeter, a bit less demanding and a little more coaxing. The blonde enjoyed pressing kisses to his cheeks, hands, and shoulders. Sometimes when the blonde had fighting thugs all day he'd come back to the tree house and just hang off Luffy and start pressing kisses to his face and lips. Luffy thought it was sweet, and encouraged the habit; hugging Sabo back and the older man slumped against him.

When his older brothers left Luffy, was super lonely. Because he stayed in the treehouse by himself he had a bountiful amount of time to train. He was generally by himself for the three years between his brothers leaving, and his own departure from Foosha Village. Thankfully he did receive letters from both of his brothers, Ace wrote rarely but his letters were pages upon pages long, Sabo wrote weekly, detailing his continued training with Dragon and his rise in ranks as if they were no big deal.

It was horrible for someone like him who thrived on touching and being touched. While it _was_ a learned behavior it had clicked with the young boy.

When Ace came to visit the StrawHats when they were docked in Alabasta it had _almost_ shocked the crew when the taller man bent down slightly and pressed a hard kiss to his little brother's lips. But Sanji had choked on his cigarette a little bit when Luffy pressed a hand to the taller raven's cheek and kissed him back.

Ace had twined his fingers into the hand that Luffy held against his cheek, and when he pulled out of the kiss the raven had pulled his younger brother into his chest. Ace had the audacity to smirk at Luffy's crew; he was enjoying the annoyance that he saw on their faces. "Luffy!~ Did you miss me? I know I missed you."

The smaller man huffed against his brother's chest happily, deciding to ignore how petty Ace was being. "Of course I missed you; it's been three years since you left Dawn Island! How are you, is Pops treating you well?" They descended into small talk and traded kisses, enjoying each other's company while they got the chance. And when the elder of the two finally left, he gave Luffy another soulful kiss, opening his eyes and watching the gathered Strawhats squirm as he kissed their captain. "see ya Lu! Stay safe! Don't go around kissing people, ok?" And with the parting jab he was gone.

Sabo's introduction to the Strawhats was a bit more interesting; he _had_ gotten there after Luffy had taken down Crocodile. He had infiltrated the castle. Walking towards the banquet hall, hearing Luffy's loud laughter made him smile. Wasting no time the blonde threw open the doors to the extremely grandiose dining room, smiling as people jumped up to intercept him. "Don't worry; I'm just here to see Luffy!"

The sudden entrance had made the entire room fall into a hush. Luffy had actually dropped the meat he was eating, much to the shock of his crewmates, once he had gotten a look at the intruder. Luffy jumped up from the table and threw himself across the room squealing his older brother's name happily. Sabo of course, braced himself and caught the rubber pirate, he had years of practice dealing with the small raven. Spinning the smaller man into a hug the Revolutionary pressed a tiny kiss behind Luffy's ear smiling as he inhaled the seawater scent that had always clung to Luffy.

"Luffy, it's been almost three full years! I'm so proud of you! Already taking down Shichibukai, what more could a Revolutionary of a big brother ask for?!" Sabo's hand messed with Luffy's hair as he ruffled the messy mop happily. Luffy was almost vibrating due to the praise, bouncing so fast that he was slowly becoming a blur.

Zoro and Nami could ignore it, they had been sailing with Luffy for the longest period of time. So they were generally able to tune out the insanity that occurred around their rubber captain. The rest watched on in bemused amazement, equal parts impressed and horrified by the blur that was their captain.

A timid, "how does he move that fast, does he do that often?" came from Chopper's general direction. Nami quickly responded with, "only when he's excited" in a vain attempt to calm Chopper down. Sanji managed to destroy any hope that the blue nosed doctor had, "he's always excited though, not _that_ excited, but ehhh..." The exchange went completely unnoticed by the two brothers, they were already off in their own world.

Luffy decided that he could eat more later, so he walked out of the room with Sabo, Intending to spend some time with his brother.

Sabo escorted Luffy back to the infirmary wanting to make sure his little brother was fine after the intense fight that he had been in. The conversation flowed between them easily; Sabo mentioned that he was going after their brother, trying to stop him from making a mistake before it was too late. But he had wanted to stop in with Luffy before finally catching up to Ace.

As they sat down on the infirmary bed, Sabo pulled Luffy into his arms hugging him tightly as he pressed his face into the fluffy mane of hair, inhaling softly as Luffy hugged him back.

For a few silent minutes the two sat like that before Sabo stood up removing his jacket, collared shirt, cravat and hat hanging them over a chair so that they wouldn't get to wrinkled. He slipped back into the bed and laying down, exposing all his old burn scars while Luffy hung his own hat on the chair as well, snuggling up against Sabo's broader chest. This was one of the things Sabo enjoyed, _just snuggling_ _together_.

The simple action of laying in a bed with his little brother, help soothe all of the old emotional wounds he had gathered in his childhood as he lived with his beasts of parents. The physical contact was something they both craved he could enjoy this. He would gladly and greedily take anything Luffy would give before he had to go chase after Ace again. But for now sleep was calling the two brothers, and so they let their dreams claim them for the night.


End file.
